Resident Evil: Cult
Resident Evil: Cult is a survival horror fanon game concept. Like Resident Evil 7, the game keeps to the franchise's original survival horror roots and focuses on exploration and suspense. It also takes inspiration from Resident Evil: Revelations, emphasising survival through the use of limited weapons, ammunition and health. Summary Resident Evil: Cult takes place in 2018, a year after the Dulvey Incident of Resident Evil 7. Set in the Fens area of England, the game follows Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance (BSAA) agent Michael Tanner as he investigates unusual incidents that have been occurring on several farmlands and their surrounding areas. Cult places an emphasis on the exploration of these areas in order to uncover the secrets hidden there by the inhabitants, who are a cult-like organisation led by the game's main antagonist, James O'Leary. Despite the protagonist being a trained BSAA agent, Cult is much less action-oriented than games such as Resident Evil 4 and 5'', which is due to the limited supply of weapons and ammunition throughout the game world. Instead, players must navigate the farm and marshlands cautiously, placing an emphasis on survival as they learn what has been happening in the Fens. Cast '''Playable characters' BSAA Europe SOA Michael Tanner '(voiced by Ryan Laughton) – a member of the BSAA Europe Bravo Team, Michael is a usually level-headed SOA who becomes infected with the F-Type virus, which prompts a series of changes in him over the course of the game. Before the start of the events of Cult, he had only been a BSAA agent for two years, making him a relative newcomer to the bioterrorism investigation world. During the course of ''Cult, his goal is to find a cure for his infection whilst also battling against the titular cult, led by James O'Leary, who see him as both a threat and a gift. '''BSAA Europe SOA Sam McLeod (voiced by Rianna Dearden) – Michael's partner and part of Bravo Team, Sam is a skilled SOA who will stop at nothing to protect her unit and the public. When Michael goes missing in the Fens, she searches for him (as played through in the Dying Light scenario) and shows nerves of steel against James' followers. She often takes on the leader role in Bravo Team, as shown with the initiative she displays throughout Cult and Dying Light. Antagonists James O'Leary (voiced by Arne Moens) – also known as F-001, James is the first-ever successful subject infected with the F-Type virus. He willingly signed up to be a test subject when his own lab studies were failing, leading to him being desperate for some kind of recognition. The Connections offered him the chance to be a part of the F-Type project in the Fens, which he agreed to. He was infected with the virus and kept under constant supervision by the lab team. However, upon realising that his powers extended to mind manipulation due to the chemicals the virus created in his blood, he began to use his power to take control of the team, specifically Mary. When The Connections planned to terminate the F-Type project, James used his control over the team to help him escape extermination and take control over a large portion of the Fens, where he leads his cult. Mary Windham (voiced by Louise Samuels) – a former Connections-hired scientist, Mary is the closest person to James and one of his trusted followers. However, her connection to him often draws the ire of his other devoted followers, most notably Paul. She shows extensive knowledge of the F-Type project and was the assumed leader of the team that conducted all related experiments. This is shown in her F-Type infected persona, where she is shown to be above many of James' other followers, giving them orders and often speaking on behalf of James. Father Matthew (voiced by Danny Watts) – a former preacher who lived in the Fens, Father Matthew is now one of James' followers and handles the Impure (those who transform into monsters as a result of the F-Type virus). It is unknown what he was like pre-infection, save for his opposition to the lab in the Fens, but his post-infection personality is one of a deranged, dogmatic teacher who aims to bring as many people as he can into James' cult. Paul Braithwaite '''(voiced by Brian Stivale) – a former scientist and Elijah's mentor, Paul is seen as the second-in-command in the cult, below James and Mary (much to his chagrin) yet above most others. Like the rest of James' followers, he is infected with the F-Type virus. He is obsessed with power, wanting to eat Michael at one point in order to absorb his strength. This appears to be in line with his pre-infection personality, where it is implied he wanted to be the head of the F-Type project and clashed with Mary on several occasions. '''Elijah Green (voiced by Richard Mark) – another former scientist who has fallen to the F-Type virus, Elijah was one of the people who worked on the F-Type project and like many, joined the cult when James was freed from the lab. He is younger than the other former scientists, and his friendship with Paul implies that he was one of his students who was brought onto the project for work experience. His infected persona is the self-proclaimed “Butcher” who provides James' followers (and potentially unwilling victims) with infected food for them to eat so that the virus can grow stronger. Plot Chapter One: Infection The game begins with the Bravo Team of the BSAA European branch setting up base in the Fens, where they have received reports of potential B.O.W. activity affecting the surrounding farms. SOA Michael Tanner is sent to investigate the most recent activity at a nearby farm. There he finds partially-eaten and attacked animals, as well as infected crops. Scanning the biological material of the crops uncovers a mysterious virus which resembles the E-Type virus seen during the Dulvey Incident a year prior. Noting that they have an experimental cure for the E-Type virus, the Bravo Team believe they can easily solve this incident without further damage. However, Michael states that there seem to be differences in how this virus and the E-Type virus manifest themselves. Whilst inspecting a dead cow that has endured extreme disfigurement as a result of the virus, Michael cuts himself on one of the unnatural spines growing out of it, which infects him with the unknown virus. Concerned, he returns to the BSAA base, where he is seemingly cured using the E-Type antidote. In the middle of the night, Michael begins to experience disturbing visions and hallucinations. One hallucination takes the form of his partner, BSAA SOA Sam McLeod. She instructs him to follow her to the “Prophet”, leading him away from the BSAA base and towards a distant farm. When the hallucination finally ends, Michael finds himself surrounded by disfigured farmworkers. He is confronted by James O'Leary, who knocks him out. Chapter Two: The Butcher Michael wakes up in a barn surrounded by dead, infected animals. Realising that his weapons and means of contacting the BSAA are gone, Michael attempts to escape the dangerous situation, only to find that he is chained to a wooden post. He is taunted by Elijah and Paul, two of James' followers, the former of whom is the self-proclaimed “butcher” who feeds James' minions. They leave Michael in the care of one of the disfigured farmworkers, and Michael manages to break free from his rusty chains and takes him out. With his hands still bound, however, Michael sneaks past the rest of the patrolling farmworkers, whom he witnesses feeding off of the dead animals that Elijah killed. In the open marshlands, Michael sees a nearby house and runs for it, being chased by farmers. Finding shelter in the house, Michael manages to unbind his hands, only to be captured by Elijah, who owns the house. Elijah uses knives to pin Michael's hands to a table and explains that the “Prophet”, James, sees Michael as a potential successor due to his inheritance and tolerance of the “Spirit” – the F-Type virus. Whilst the Spirit has made the other farmworkers he feeds go mad, Michael is remaining resistant, and is thus seen by James and his associates as important. However, Elijah states that James has given him instruction to “break” Michael so that he will accept his role and stop retreating. Michael manages to escape Elijah by sacrificing one hand and ripping it open to free himself. He escapes to the barn – which has been turned into a crude butcher's kitchen complete with machines – connected to the house, with Elijah close behind. With only a rake to defend himself, Michael fends off Elijah. During their fight, Elijah is knocked into a saw and severs his arm, only for a new monstrous arm to grow from the wound, complete with bony spines and vine-like tendrils. Michael defeats Elijah by pushing him head-first into a grinder, effectively killing him. Chapter Three: Personal Jesus Michael leaves the barn and explores the marshlands of the Fens, where he encounters humanoid monsters (dubbed “the Impure” by James and his cult) who emerge from the waters. Eventually, he finds a ruined farmhouse, where he witnesses the F-Type virus-infected Father Matthew performing an “exorcism” on a healthy farmer. Father Matthew seemingly infects the farmer with his own blood and watches as the farmer violently transforms, before his body begins to “merge” with the dead bodies of his family around him. Father Matthew then tells his subordinates to throw the decaying collective of bodies into the marshes as they are future Impures. Whilst exploring the ruined house, Michael overhears Father Matthew communicating with James via radio. News of Elijah's death is explained and Father Matthew decides to “exorcise” Michael as well. Michael also overhears Father Matthew complaining about the side effects of the F-Type virus, with James telling him to go to the monastery to seek relief there. Deciding to explore the monastery before Father Matthew can arrive, Michael treks through the Fens to reach the crumbling building. There, he finds an array of unmarked chemicals, as well as documents written by a scientist called Mary Windham detailing the F-Type virus, its effects, and recent experiments attempting to subdue the Impure transformations that occur in some subjects. Before Michael can figure out which chemicals serve as a potential antidote, Father Matthew arrives at the monastery and prepares to “exorcise” Michael. During their altercation, Father Matthew is consumed by the F-Type virus and transforms into a gargoyle-like creature that scales the monastery in an attempt to evade and sneak attack Michael. Father Matthew is eventually incinerated when Michael burns down the monastery accidentally, taking the antidotes with it and attracting the attention of the cultist farmworkers. Chapter Four: Conflict of Interests The cultists surround Michael, planning to kill him before Mary – the writer of the notes on the F-Type virus – intervenes, stating that Michael is needed by James. Paul arrives and disagrees with this, wanting to instead kill Michael and feast on his “strong Spirit”. When Mary refuses him, Paul suggests he kill her instead, only for her to refute him by noting that James would not be pleased. As they continue to argue, Mary begins to experience pains and is rushed away, leaving Michael in Paul's care. Michael attempts to escape Paul, evading his patrolling cultists, only to be knocked unconscious by Paul himself. Angered by Elijah's death, Paul takes Michael to “the kitchen”, where he chains him to some piping on the wall. In the kitchen, several human body parts and animal carcases are present, along with Elijah's mutilated remains. Michael awakens to find Paul mournfully consuming Elijah's flesh whilst expressing his hunger for Michael's “Spirit” and his hatred for Mary. Seeing that Michael has awakened, Paul decides to eat only part of him and severs one of his fingers before eating it in front of him. As Paul's F-Type virus infection begins to manifest in tumorous growths as he hungers for more of Michael's body parts, Michael manages to escape by tearing his chains from the wall. Paul chases Michael through the house, his transformation accelerating as his anger grows. Michael manages to escape the house and runs into a clearing in a field, where he is confronted by the almost-completely transformed Paul. After Michael attacks the tumours on Paul's body, causing them to burst, Paul eventually explodes as more tumours grow to replace the burst ones, consuming his body and ripping it apart. When Paul's followers gather and attempt to kill Michael, he escapes into the wet marshlands. Chapter Five: The Collective Watching from the marshlands, Michael notes that the cultists don't follow him, and the ones who do are consumed by Impure which rise from the waters. He ventures further into the flooded fields, where he finds a house overrun with water. Using a nearby water pump, Michael drains away most of the flooding and explores the house, where he finds a shotgun and more documents detailing the F-Type experiments. The documents, again written by Mary, discuss The Connections and imply that James is the first-ever successful F-Type experiment, being called F-001. Discovering a partially-flooded basement, Michael realises that it is a former lab which has been mostly cleaned out. There, he finds documents detailing The Connections' abandonment of the lab after the Dulvey Incident. Whilst Michael explores the lab, another F-Type monster emerges from a flooded level beneath the basement. The mass of Impure bodies, which has created a tumorous abomination, reveals itself to be sentient and calls itself 'The Collective'. The Collective states that it is just that: a collective of the decomposing bodies of the former scientists who worked in The Connections' lab, all of whom were infected by James before transforming into the Impure. Able to sense Michael's F-Type infection and jealous that he has not become one of it, The Collective plans to assimilate him into itself before attacking him. Michael manages to fight off The Collective and its Impure minions, eventually killing it. Before it dies, The Collective warns Michael that he has made a grave mistake. A loud horn sounds over the Fens and Michael goes to investigate, leaving the lab and The Collective's crumbling body behind. Chapter Six: Follow My Voice Michael watches as cultists follow the sound of the horn, gathering outside of James' farmhouse. James announces that the “immaculate birth” is imminent and orders his followers to scour for Michael, whilst also telling others to plan an attack on the BSAA base they had scouted out. Michael manages to sneak into James' farmhouse, where he finds his stolen equipment. Using the radio, he contacts the BSAA base, warning them of the planned attack. Amongst his belongings, he finds his gun, which has been unloaded, and also notices that his combat knife is missing. Michael continues to explore the farmhouse, finding more of Mary's writing, where she details The Connections' plan to exterminate F-001/James before abandoning the flooded lab. It is revealed that James was placed in Mary's care and that she was tasked with destroying him, but she had a change of heart due to their growing relationship (where it is implied he used his mind-manipulating abilities and virus to control her). Michael is discovered by James, who congratulates Michael on his “progression”. James explains how The Collective had interfered with his “hive mind”, corrupting his ability to manipulate others as the scientists who created him had intended, and that Michael had relieved the burden by destroying The Collective. When Michael attempts to fight James, James chokes him and force-feeds him his blood, which triggers a strong F-Type hallucination. Believing Michael to be “ready”, James sends him out into the Fens, where Michael follows his voice towards the BSAA base. Michael is greeted by several members of Bravo Team who stayed behind to defend against the potential cult attack, only for Michael to gun them down with his shotgun, dazed and manipulated by his hallucination of James. As he hears the rest of Bravo Team approaching, Michael attempts to gun them down too, but is overwhelmed by his hallucination and passes out. Chapter Seven: Immaculate Birth Michael awakens handcuffed at the BSAA base, where he is questioned by Sam and the remaining Bravo Team members. He states that he was under James' influence, but the majority of Bravo Team find it hard to believe him. Alpha Team is called for back-up as signs of the cultists closing in become evident. With Bravo Team distracted by the cultists, Michael manages to break free of his restraints, now being empowered by the F-Type virus and James' hive mind ability. With James' voice guiding him, Michael runs from the base towards the farmhouse, avoiding being shot down by Sam. Arriving at the farmhouse, Michael is allowed in by James, who tells him that he is just in time for the “immaculate birth”. Naming Michael one of his true successors due to his control over the F-Type infection, James instructs him to go to the basement lab to witness the “personification of Spirit”. There, Michael witnesses Mary giving birth to a monstrous B.O.W. (the F-002), which kills her and begins wrecking the lab. The sight of the monster brings Michael back to his senses. F-002 attempts to escape the house and kills several cultists in the process, with Michael narrowly evading it. When he is eventually cornered by F-002, Michael attacks it, resulting in it fleeing into the Fens. This enrages James, who sees this as a betrayal from one of his supposed followers. After being chased through the large farmhouse, Michael encounters James in the basement lab. The two fight, with James attempting to subdue Michael using the powers given to him by the F-Type virus. Michael manages to overcome this corruption and defeats James, who collapses beside Mary. Hearing the Alpha and Bravo Teams approaching, Michael escapes the house and decides to find the F-002. Chapter Eight: Impure Life Finding a trail of destruction left behind by F-002, Michael follows it deeper into the Fens. As he explores the marshlands, he evades crazed cultists who seek revenge on him, as well as the Alpha and Bravo Teams who are searching for him. Michael follows the F-002 up a stream where he encounters weakened Impure before finally finding the F-002 at the burned-down monastery he had previously fought Father Matthew in. He watches as the F-002 rolls around in what is left of the chemicals that supposedly relieved the effects of the F-Type virus, and comes to the realisation that the B.O.W. is more sentient than others, maybe even hating its own existence as it lets out pained and enraged sounds. Seemingly angered by the fact that the chemicals are not helping it, the F-002 turns its rage to Michael, utilising the rubble of the monastery as weaponry. Michael manages to cripple the F-002 and it falls, remaining docile as Michael approaches. Realising that the F-002 is no longer able to fight, he puts it out of its misery as the sun rises over the Fens. Killing the F-002 has severe consequences for Michael as he begins to experience debilitating pain as a result of the virus' hive mind. Alpha and Bravo Team discover and detain him as his condition worsens. As the teams drive back to the BSAA base, Michael reflects on the events of the day and questions his future as an SOA. As the credits roll, an audio file recorded by Mary plays, where she talks about the success of the F-001/James and speculates about a future ruled by the F-Types, as The Connections had intended with the F-Type project. Gameplay Unlike most other Resident Evil games, Cult gives players the option to choose between third-person and first-person perspectives, which they can switch between at any time. Like Resident Evil 7, Cult allows the use of VR headsets such as Sony's PSVR Headset, the Oculus Rift, and the HTC Vive for the VR mode. VR mode is strictly played in a first-person perspective, removing the ability to switch to third-person. With the exception of this forced first-person perspective, VR mode does not differ from the non-VR mode game experience and players can still experience the game as it was intended without the use of VR. Game modes Cult features a standard main game that the player progresses through. Cult also features a shorter scenario called Dying Light, in which they play as BSAA Europe SOA Sam McLeod. Dying Light has its own save file system independent of the main game's save files, so players can play through them whenever they choose. All game modes utilise the same core game controls and rules. Controls Cult uses the standard core game controls that were present in Resident Evil 7. The fighting controls also remain the same, with the attack and aim buttons changing the way the player fights using their melee weapons or firearms. The aim button allows for precise yet slow strikes or shots, whilst the attack button allows for fast yet inaccurate or wide strikes or shots. Cult also retains the guard command, which braces the player for attacks but can result in them sustaining severe injuries if the attack is strong. The crouch command remains as well, allowing the player to dodge attacks. The crouch command is also used for stealth, with the player being able to remain crouched in order to stay out of an enemy's line of sight. The open inventory and map/files commands are navigated in real time. There is also a use recovery item button, which allows the player to consume a Green Herb if they have any in their inventory. Painkillers and other healing methods work differently and thus cannot be activated by the use recovery item button. Systems Like most Resident Evil games since 4'', ''Cult uses a background Rank system which adjusts the difficulty during gameplay. Cult uses a new Fear system, which is mostly invisible to the player with the exception of a few minor visual and sound cues indicating its level. The Fear system is affected by the player's health, any severe injuries they have sustained, the type of enemies they are fighting (with stronger enemies and bosses affecting Fear more), and the environment they are in. When a player's Fear reaches the maximum level, it triggers F-Type virus hallucinations, which make the visuals of the game world more terrifying and decrease many of the player's abilities, such as the strength of their melee attacks and their movement speed. The hallucinations can only be cured with Green Herbs. Green Herbs can also be used to reduce the Fear level before any hallucinations are triggered. This system is exclusive to the main game scenario. The Health system for Cult is slightly more complex than previous Resident Evil games. Green Herbs scattered around the game can be used to regenerate small amounts of health and are also necessary to avoid or cure hallucinations that Michael suffers from as a result of his F-Type virus infection. Against stronger enemies, the player can sustain dangerous wounds such as stab wounds, fractured bones, and even broken bones or cut-off fingers (which can occur when attempting to deflect strong attacks). These severe injuries not only reduce the player's health, but also inflict penalties on the player. For example: stab wounds slow the player's movement speed; fractured bones can reduce the strength of their melee attacks; and severed fingers eliminate the player's ability to pick locks, use certain weapons, and can make them more susceptible to F-Type virus hallucinations due to the in-game Fear system. These severe injuries require more than Green Herbs to fully heal them. Methods of healing include cauterising wounds, bandaging them, and creating makeshift casts. Using these methods not only replenishes the player's health, but also removes any gameplay penalties they had. However, these methods are not readily available, which means that players are forced to be careful with the damage they take and could be forced to play the game with gameplay penalties for a prolonged period of time. This increases the focus on the survival aspects for the player. Painkillers are also available to the player, and though these don't heal severe injuries, they do decrease the severity of gameplay penalties inflicted by such injuries. If the player sustains too much damage and their health reaches zero, they enter a dying state where one hit will kill them. To recover from this state, they must wait for their health to auto recover or use a Green Herb. Remaining in the dying state for too long will cause the Fear level to dramatically increase, and if the player is to enter an F-Type virus hallucination in the dying state, they will trigger an automatic game over. Combat With Cult placing emphasis on the survival aspects of the game, there are limited firearms available to the player. The only firearm available to the player during their first playthrough of the main scenario is a shotgun that they can acquire later in the game, though ammunition for the shotgun is very scarce. The shotgun however is a powerful weapon, which can kill common enemies with one shot and helps the player immensely in boss battles. Due to its power, ammo conservation is recommended. The player is rewarded with other firearms for accomplishing gameplay milestones, such as completing the main scenario within a certain amount of time or obtaining all collectibles. Ammo remains scarce however, meaning that the survival horror aspects are not completely removed from the game. Cult provides the player with an array of melee weapons, with melee attacks being the main form of fighting that is encouraged in the main scenario. Melee weapons that can be picked up include knives, rakes, baseball bats, shovels and 2x4s. The player also has the ability to break objects in order to obtain melee weapons from them, such as breaking chairs to use the legs or ripping exposed pipes from walls. Melee weapons can be thrown, and there are also specific throwing weapons in the game such as bricks, rocks, books, and other miscellaneous junk. Unlike firearms, melee weapons can break when used a certain amount of times, meaning the player has to scavenge for more weapons and be careful when using them. Features Health As stated above, Cult uses a revamped Health system. Health is indicated by blood build-up on the screen and with a health gauge. Green Herbs are still used to regenerate health, and also serve as a way to control the player's Fear level. Green Herbs can be used during combat, unlike the methods needed to heal severe injuries, which take more time and can only be done outside combat. The healing methods are depicted with animations that show the character either cauterising a wound using a source of fire or heat (usually a lighter or cooker hob), applying bandages, or creating and applying a makeshift cast. Ammunition Firearm ammunition in the game is scarce, which encourages ammo conservation. Despite the first firearm becoming available in the second half of the main game, ammo can be picked up earlier and is even sacrificed to solve some puzzles. Unlike melee weapons, firearm ammunition cannot be crafted. Puzzles Puzzles are a key mechanic in Cult and many must be solved in order to progress the plot or open up other areas of the game world. They can also be solved to unlock additional files for the game which details the plot and characters in more depth. The type of puzzles range from riddles, piecing together documents and pictures, and placing objects on scales to open different doors. Another type of puzzle-esque mini-game in Cult is the lock-picking mechanic, which requires the player to navigate the pick through the lock successfully without hitting the side or ridges within the lock. Using lock-picking gives the player access to files, inventory items, weapons, and even shortcuts through the game world. Collectables Like many other Resident Evil games, Cult features optional collectables scattered around the world that the player can pick up. Collecting all of the collectables unlocks different rewards that the player can use when replaying the game. The collectables that the player can pick up include Mary Windham's notes, which detail much of Cult's backstory. These notes usually come in readable form, but the player can also find audio recordings from Mary in certain areas. Bible pages from Father Matthew can also be collected, with these usually being accompanied by handwritten notes that give the player more information on the plot and characters. Finding all of the Bible pages unlocks Father Matthew's Rifle, a unique firearm that is granted to the player at the beginning of every following playthrough and comes with ample, but not unlimited, ammunition. Finally, the player can collect F-Type virus evidence, which is arguably the most difficult collection to complete due to the evidence being varied in appearance. Evidence is collected by scanning or investigating objects of interest, such as infected animal carcases, blood samples, biomass created by the virus (tendrils, infected water, etc.), infected human remains and corpses, files, and other related items. Finding all of the F-Type virus evidence unlocks a Samurai Edge (Original Model) with unlimited ammunition. Achievements and rewards Unlocked rewards appear in the Cache and can be used across all campaigns and game modes. Category:Games